The United States Supreme Court on April 27 delivered a setback to Florida parents and pro-family advocates seeking resolution on whether public schools can help “transition” students against the parents’ wishes or without their knowledge.
In Monday’s announcement, the high court declined to hear the case, Littlejohn v. School Board of Leon County, which has wound through the courts since 2021.
The case boils down to two primary questions: Do parents have a fundamental constitutional right to know about—and guide—major decisions their child makes about gender identity at school? And do schools have the right to keep a student’s so-called gender identity secret from parents?
The Supreme Court’s refusal leaves families, schools and lower courts in a constitutional gray zone, said attorneys from the Child & Parental Rights Campaign, who are representing the parents.
The Littlejohns know this all too well. Their 13-year-old daughter had voiced her desire to her school to use a male name and pronouns. Rather than inform her parents, the school responded by creating a secret “support plan.” Teachers and classmates began using the new name and pronouns—while the school used the child’s original name and pronouns with her parents to deliberately deceive them.
When the secrets finally surfaced, January Littlejohn and her husband, Jeffrey, sued the school board in Leon County, Florida. The claim was straightforward: the district’s actions violated basic parental rights to raise and make critical decisions for one’s own children. In March 2025, lower courts ruled against the Littlejohns. The lower court judges acknowledged the policy might infringe on parental rights—but said it didn’t “shock the conscience” enough to qualify as a constitutional violation.
Circuit Judge Robin S. Rosenbaum went further, noting that “the child was not physically harmed” and that school officials were simply trying to “help the child.” In her view, the school had neither removed the Littlejohns’ child from their custody nor forced the child to do anything against her will.
That set up the core legal question for the Supreme Court: When a school policy intrudes on a right “deeply rooted in this Nation’s history”—such as parental authority over a child’s upbringing—can courts dismiss the case simply because the school’s conduct wasn’t outrageous enough? Or do parents deserve stronger constitutional protection?
The high court chose not to answer.
“We are disappointed the Court declined to hear our case,” Littlejohn said in a statement to The Christian Post. And yet, she added, “we trust in God’s timing and remain steadfast in our convictions.”
“Our case helped shine a national light on serious parental rights violations, and we are grateful that Florida took swift legislative steps to better protect families. Unfortunately, families across the country are still being harmed by policies that allow the secret social transition of children in schools.” And “with thousands of school districts affected, this remains a national issue. Our work is far from over—we will continue using our experience to advocate for families and for policies that respect the fundamental role of parents as the primary decision-makers in their children’s lives.”
This Littlejohn case helped fuel Florida’s 2022 “Parental Rights in Education” law, which protects young children from classroom instruction on sexual orientation or gender identity in kindergarten through third grade, requires age-appropriate content in higher grades, mandates parental notification for changes involving a student’s mental, emotional, or physical health, and explicitly bars schools from encouraging students to hide information from their parents. Similar debates and laws have erupted in states across the country.
Yet in turning away the case, the Supreme Court left the 11th Circuit’s ruling in place, which, the Littlejohn’s lawyers argue will result in schools in that circuit following the lead of Leon County, Florida schools, thus shifting the legal battle back from federal courtrooms to state legislatures and local school boards.
